D&D Truthers

A recent article by Cecilia D'Anastasio asserts, in effect, that the RPG community has been purposely misled to believe that Gary Gygax was the sole creative force behind Dungeons & Dragons. She quotes Rob Kuntz as stating:

“We are in a mass delusion that it’s all Gary, that he’s the father of role-playing games,” he said. “Humans do not like to admit they’ve been hornswoggled, lied to, cheated, or fooled.”

Kuntz’s thesis is that Dave Arneson was deprived of his share of the credit—deliberately and falsely.

Who are these people who’ve been hornswoggled, lied to, cheated, or fooled? Not anyone interested in the origins of Dungeons & Dragons. I’m not especially interested in this topic, but both Gygax and Arneson are credited as authors of the original edition. Isn’t that a clear enough sign that Gygax was not solely responsible?

I’m not committed to a particular view of the origins of Dungeons & Dragons. I’m sure there’s plenty of credit to go around. But a careful reader will note how D’Anastasio’s article repeatedly undermines its thesis. It acknowledges that:

• Arneson himself characterized his Blackmoor game as a Chainmail variant;
• “Arneson didn’t have a concrete ruleset; he was making things up as he went along”;
• Arneson gave Gygax “18 pages of handwritten notes, a lot of which were simply stats for Chainmail monsters”;
• Arneson “wasn’t much for polished rulesets” and his Blackmoor game “didn’t exist as a full-blown set of rules”;
• Gygax subsequently generated a 50-page manuscript of rules, “later accepting and integrating some notes from Arneson”;
• the ecosystem and mythology of D&D reflect Gygax’s fantasy preferences; and
• Gygax’s and Arneson’s home games differed from one another and from the published rules.

Boiled down to its essence, D’Anastasio’s claim—presented through the words of others, often Kuntz—is that Gary was merely responsible for the mechanics of the game, and that Arneson authored the all-important core of the game: “the things that D&D fans love the most about the game—the things that distinguish ‘role-playing’ from ‘fantasy wargaming.’”

Assuming that role-playing is the true core of the game, however, it is not intellectual property in any meaningful sense. It may have been an imaginative breakthrough in gaming—serially playing a single character in a fantasy setting—but it’s a very general idea. Arneson might be the father of D&D but no more than he is the father of all role-playing games. It doesn’t mean that Arneson’s role in the creation of the specific game of Dungeons & Dragons as it developed was especially meaningful.

And on its face, the claim that game mechanics are secondary is quite dubious. The early editions of the game are markedly different from later editions of the game, and they have different fanbases largely because of their different mechanics.

So when Kuntz says that Arneson’s Blackmoor “wasn’t a prototype” and that Gygax stole a "fully functioning game" from Arneson, he’s making an insupportable claim. Notably, he chose to make this claim only after Gygax’s death.

There’s no grand conspiracy to deprive Arneson of his rightful share of the credit. Setting aside the fact that most gamers don’t really care about the origins of Dungeons & Dragons, Arneson has a lesser reputation than Gygax for the same basic reason that we know less about civilizations that didn't leave behind written records. Gygax was far more productive in this respect. We can still reference, adopt, and modify the mechanics he set down in the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons core rulebooks and they have informed the content of subsequent editions. Arneson did not leave such a legacy.

On Privilege

Antero Garcia, a very goofy-looking assistant professor at Stanford, wrote an article entitled Privilege, Power, and Dungeons & Dragons: How Systems Shape Racial and Gender Identities in Tabletop Role-Playing Games. I'd give you an overview of this important work, but the article is only available for $42.50, which buys 24-hour access. That's a pretty steep price-point for a fellow who is concerned about privilege.

The Scorpion and the Frog

You'd have to have a heart of stone not to laugh at the lame proposed boycott of GaryCon, given Bill Webb's prior attempt to buy Stacy Dellorfano's love.

Reason Magazine on Dungeons & Dragons

Reason has an article authored by C.J. Ciaramella entitled The Radical Freedom of Dungeons & Dragons. Ciaramella contends that “D&D is a deeply libertarian game.” I’m not convinced, but that’s another argument for another day.

What caught my eye was Ciaramella’s self-contradictory observations about the sexual politics surrounding the game. At one point, he observes:

Although advertisements for D&D in the '70s and '80s always included an obligatory girl player at the table, there was a chauvinistic attitude within the cloistered fraternity of war gamers that lady brains simply weren't wired to be interested in gold and glory. Internal and external surveys from the late '70s showed that the percentage of female players was in the low single digits; one didn't have to be proficient in the "investigation" skill to figure out why girls weren't rushing to play games that included a "harlot table" and where women in the stories were often little more than furniture on which boys could act out their less chivalrous fantasies.

It's an odd assertion. What are the odds that girls or women not playing Advanced Dungeons & Dragons were familiar with an obscure table buried in one of several appendices in the Dungeons Masters Guide? The table appears on page 192 of 240. And unless one knows where to look for it, it's hard to find, as there's no reference to it in the table of contents or index.

While the Harlot Table may be infamous nowadays, in the 70s and 80s—before the Internet—the only people who would have been familiar with it for the most part would have been those who used the DMG. A lot of the early-D&D-was-sexist talk is like this: it takes contemporary criticisms of the game and retrojects them into the past as if those criticisms were there all along. Can anyone cite a criticism of the Harlot Table as sexist that was made back in the 70s or 80s?

What’s odder still is that Ciaramella identifies an entirely plausible alternative explanation for why girls and women were not playing D&D in large numbers back in the day. In an earlier characterization of the three core books for Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, he writes of the game that:

It looked, in other words, like what would happen if you opened up a preteen boy's imagination and dumped the contents on the floor.

Why would a game that resembled “a preteen boy’s imagination” appeal to girls and women to the same extent as boys and men? It wouldn’t, of course, and there’s nothing sexist about that, unless one thinks that a game should or must equally appeal to a preteen girl’s imagination. I don’t. Neither does anyone reasonable.

Dungeons & Dumbasses: Rob Kuntz Edition

You’ve disappointed Rob Kuntz for the last time. After channeling Oral Roberts—announcing that he could only continue to grace the flock with his presence if it committed to buy a certain number of his planned module-design aid—Rob discovered that a world mired in unbelief had forsaken him. So, alas, the project is no more and, like Middle Earth's elves, he must depart:

I have decided to go in a completely different direction with what Arneson gifted to us, and outside of the RPG Industry. Once I make up my mind it is pretty well set in stone because I have usually assessed all angles prior to such decisions.

I will be exclusively promoting design theory and systems theory for play from this point forward and will be spending increasingly less time on RPG related matter as well.

In the next 6 months I'll probably be finished with my last effort in RPG's, a history, the BOOK, and from there I hope to stay in theory, essays, board games and other. RPGs have run their course.

Such irony, too. I have an idea for an open systems RPG, really good *written and outlined in 2010* but cannot/would not produce as it would be something that people would not play. I would. Gary would have. Arneson, of course. But folks today? Nah. They are stuck with their brand of gaming, don't take chances and look for sameness, a comfort zone. This is not BITD of wild and carefree meandering, the huge cross sections of science and fiction and history which intersected with design, those days are gone at least as I have attempted to find any comparison to them in this industry.

I have seen this coming, btw, since 2007 and probably even before. No surprise. Thought I'd give it a last shot for the good ole times. No biggy. I have interested parties outside this hobby sphere, in fact much bigger than within it.

He didn’t fail; the hobby failed him. This, of course, is more of the same Arnesonian one-true-way dead-enderism that Kuntz has been flogging for years. It’s Dungeons & Dragons as gnostic cult.

Between this and Frank Mentzer’s recent antics, the hobby’s old-timers are really embarrassing themselves. I wish they’d just go away and I don’t think I’m alone in this opinion.

Secret Doors

Erik Tenkar makes the following criticism of secret doors in dungeons:

I find secret doors to be an overused obstacle. Just how many does a single dungeon level need?

My problem with secret doors is that they are a potential show stopper that even with good play from your players, the dice can decide the door is never found. What lies behind? For all intents and purposes it never existed if the dice decide it was never found.

Concealed doors? Now THAT is something I can get behind. Look behind that armoire. Why are there curtains on this wall? What's under this rug? Good play will reveal with concealed doors what dice may otherwise steal with secret doors.

I think this reflects a poor understanding of the various purposes that secret doors should serve. They should never be a “show stopper,” and if you are not designing boring, linear dungeons that generally should not be an issue. To state the obvious, however, secret doors should not be placed in a fashion that could halt the party’s forward progress in the dungeon.

So what should secret doors be used for? Among other things:

• to segregate a sublevel that somehow differs from the present level;
• to secure significant treasure from casual discovery;
• to conceal a useful additional entrance or exit (e.g., out of the dungeon, to a much deeper level);
• to serve as a hidey-hole for opponents to lay in wait for or seek refuge from the party;
• to hide a route that allows quick or safe passage past an obstacle or hazard; or
• to seal off an especially dangerous foe so that the party does not merely stumble across it.

Nor should secret doors be discoverable by random dice rolls alone. Players should be able to locate secret doors—or at least increase their chances of doing so—through good play. For example:

• intuition as to where searching might prove fruitful based on room or corridor shape or structure;
• careful mapping that reveals curious empty spaces in the level; or
• examination that turns up telltale clues, like footprints that lead up to a blank wall, seams in the masonry that outline a portal, or an unexplained draft that causes torches to flutter.

As for the concern that areas lying behind secret doors might go undiscovered . . . well, this is a game of exploration. It is not a foregone conclusion that the party will unearth all of the underworld’s secrets. There’s no sense of the unknown or adventure in a dungeon that lays bare its mysteries to everyone who stumbles through the front door.

Blueholme: Journeymanne Rules — A Review

Blueholme: Journeymanne Rules
Author: Michael Thomas
Dreamscape Design
Approx. 120 pages
Available on Lulu ($24.99 hardcover; $14.99 softcover)

Blueholme: Journeymanne Rules essentially is a restatement and expansion of Holmes’s basic edition of Dungeons & Dragons, which in turn was a restatement of the original edition of the game and some of its supplements further edited in anticipation of the publication of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. Whereas Holmes’s basic edition only covered the first three levels of play, Blueholme aims to be a complete roleplaying game, supporting play through level twenty.

The rulebook is divided into several sections, including but not limited to:

• 11 pages on character creation that cover four classes—clerics, fighters, magic-users, and thieves—as well as armor, equipment, and weapons;
• 31 pages of spells: 8 spells per level, spell levels one through seven, for clerics; and 20 spells per level, spell levels one through nine, for magic-users;
• 9 pages of combat-related rules, which includes some Holmesian elements like parrying, attacks provoked by retreat, and the effect of cover;
• a 26-page bestiary detailing 123 monsters (more when different subtypes are accounted for; e.g., different types of giants and dragons); and
• 19 pages on treasure, including a table of treasure types, which are referenced in monster entries, and a wealth of magic items.

In comparison, Holmes’s basic edition was just 48 pages. But Blueholme’s increased page count is not unreasonable given its expanded scope. And Blueholme generally does a nice job of revising and condensing Holmes’s prose while retaining its clarity.

Blueholme likely will not appeal to those who prefer AD&D to other editions. But for those who want a less complicated, more streamlined version of the game, Blueholme is a very good alternative. Class, spell, and monster descriptions are far more concise than those in AD&D. In general, Blueholme is better organized than its inspiration, not that Holmes’s basic edition was poorly organized.

Blueholme’s artwork is strong. Its cover depicts an adventuring party in a cavern gathered before a treasure chest and hoard; a dragon reminiscent of the one on the cover of Holmes’s basic edition lurks behind them in the shadows on the periphery of the party’s light source. Stylistically, the cover art melds old and new in a manner well suited to a restatement and expansion of an older edition of the game; its color scheme, which features gold and aquamarine hues, is appealing to the eye.

[Blueholme’s Cover Art]

The interior of the rulebook includes a lot of old-school style black-and-white artwork, including a really nice callback to the cover art by a different artist that depicts the adventurers in combat with the dragon amidst the treasure hoard. Some of the interior art might be considered too racy for younger readers:

• a sorceress with ample cleavage;
• some bare-breasted water nymphs;
• an amazon archer with exposed breasts;
• a trio of saggy-titted harpies; and
• a half-serpent woman who’s mislaid her blouse.

This is not inconsistent with Holmes’s basic edition, which included a buxom, bare-breasted harpy. Nor do I personally find this artwork objectionable (even for younger readers). But some might not care for such nudity or so much of it.

I’m not especially knowledgeable about Holmes’s basic edition (or other editions of the game for that matter); however, to my non-expert eyes, Blueholme appears to emulate its namesake well. A few interesting features traceable to Holmes’s basic edition that differ from at least some other editions of the game include:

• a five-point alignment system: lawful good, chaotic good, neutral, chaotic evil, and lawful evil;
• an initiative system that largely turns on the relative dexterity scores of the individual combatants, subject to the following attack sequence: spell-casting, missile weapons, and melee combat;
• a combat round that is 10-seconds in duration (as opposed to OD&D’s and AD&D’s one-minute combat round);
• simple rules for magic-users to create level-appropriate new spells and scrolls without first attaining several experience levels; and
• good and evil clerics are limited to casting opposite versions of certain spells (e.g., cure light wounds for good clerics and deal light wounds for evil clerics).

Like the scroll-making mechanic for magic-users, Blueholme adds similarly simple rules allowing clerics to create holy water and healing potions.

At least one significant deviation from Holmes’s basic edition stands out. Holmes’s basic edition has specific rules as to the abilities of dwarves, elves, and halflings; it also limited the classes available to demi-humans. Blueholme leaves these racial abilities and class availability to the discretion of individual DMs. It does refer the reader to monster entries for demi-humans, which specify various racial abilities that could be applied to characters as well. But this is not the only place the racial abilities of demi-humans are discussed. Racial modifiers for several types of demi-humans regarding thieves’ abilities are included at the very beginning of the chapter on monsters, and some additional rules about elves and secret doors and dwarves and traps are included in an altogether different section of the rulebook. This leaves a bit to be desired in terms of organization.

Like Holmes’s basic edition, Blueholme emphasizes that players can play just about any creature detailed in the section on monsters, subject to the DM’s approval. In particular, it suggests dreenoi—humanoid insect-men—as a racial option in addition to dwarves, elves, and halflings, because Holmes played such a character. But the monster description for dreenoi does not necessarily provide any meaningful abilities for them apart from the possibility of telepathy, which they are said to use only in communicating with one another. For an experienced DM, the lack of default rules concerning the abilities of demi-humans and the classes available to them won’t pose too much difficulty. But less experienced DMs could find the lack of default rules a little more challenging; making demi-humans distinct and interesting while not rendering humans a second-class species can be tricky.

Nor is that the only instance in which Blueholme might be less user-friendly for inexperienced DMs. To take a relatively minor example, the monster entry for "gnoll" provides no clue as to what one is apart from “bestial, vicious, and stupid”; whereas, Holmes’s basic edition succinctly identifies gnolls as “beings like hyena-men.” The same is true of the entry for "spectre." Blueholme says spectres are “incorporeal” but not much else, while Holmes’s basic edition references Tolkien’s Nazgul. If one does not already have a sense of what these monsters are, Blueholme does not clarify matters. For monsters that are well known outside of roleplaying games, like vampires or zombies, descriptions might not be necessary. But for lesser known monsters, like gnolls and spectres, some rudimentary description might be helpful.

Blueholme deviates from Holmes’s basic edition in some minor ways as well. One notable instance—it adjusts the experience points required per level by one so that each class begins first level with one experience point rather than zero. Why? The rulebook does not explain, and this revision is sufficiently atypical that an explanation would be useful. I surmise that this change might have been made to distinguish adventurers from “normal humans,” who are 0-level and belong to no class, based on a couple of references within the section on monsters, specifically the entries for “normal human” and “vampire.” But this is a guess, and its in-game significance is unstated. My hunch is that 0-level retainers who return from an adventure and are awarded experience then take on a class and become first level.

Like any revision or expansion of a prior edition, Blueholme has some material that is new (or at least it’s new to me and appears to have no precedent in Holmes’s basic edition). One of the more intriguing bits is its optional rule regarding light and heavy weapons. Under this rule, one can attack with a light weapon (e.g., dagger) twice per round but rolls two damage dice per hit and takes the lower result; one can attack with a heavy weapon (e.g., great sword; light crossbow) once every two rounds but rolls two damage dice per hit and takes the higher result. Standard weapons (e.g., long sword) allow one attack per round and one damage die. The damage die for all weapons is a d6. I’m not sure how this shakes out mathematically (i.e., whether it confers a relative advantage on the use of light or heavy weapons).

Blueholme’s monster entry for “demon” is another addition. Whether due to space limitations or some other consideration, Holmes’s basic edition consciously excludes demons. Rather than including numerous entries for the various subtypes of demons made famous by OD&D’s supplements and AD&D, Blueholme includes a single entry with a table for generating random demonic abilities along with the guidance that demons “come in all shapes and sizes, and may have wings, extra limbs, horns, scales, tails, or any number of usually grotesque physical features.” A creative DM could expand on this entry with additional tables for physical attributes as well as additional abilities to create a wide array of unique demons (or types of demons). This is a nice way of making something familiar new again while conserving space.

Arguably, the weakest section of Blueholme is the final one on campaigns, which discusses dungeons and the wilderness. This material generally is new. Its shortcomings relate not so much to what is there as what is not; this section spans just five pages and omits key material that Holmes’s basic edition includes, specifically a cross-sectional dungeon map and sample dungeon. Blueholme states that these materials are omitted due to space considerations, however, and that an introductory adventure—The Shrine of Sobek—is available in .pdf for free that discusses dungeons and the wilderness in further detail. This adventure has not been released yet, but it likely will make up for this material’s absence from the rulebook.

Blueholme is very well done overall. Its strengths far exceed any ostensible weaknesses. Many of my criticisms may be attributable to hard choices posed by considerations of space and price point. Personally, I’d rather pay a little more for some additional content, but that’s a judgment call. That said, this rulebook makes me want to run a Blueholme game, and that’s probably the highest praise one can give a product of this nature. Kudos to Michael Thomas for his excellent work.

[cross-posted at Knights & Knaves Alehouse]

Vornheim: An Anti-Eulogy For A Product that Should Have Been Buried Long Ago

PRODUCT REVIEW

Vornheim: The Complete City Kit (2011)

Author: Zak S.

64 pages

Retail Price: $19.99

Prefatory Note

Zak S. is a polarizing figure; people tend to love him or hate him. This is a review of a book that he wrote, not a review of him, his detractors’ opinions of him, or any of the controversies between them.

Introduction

Since its release, Vornheim has been much-lauded by the OSR community. Most of its reviews are very positive. Many of these reviews offer nary a word of criticism. It’s not that there are not positive reviews that note some shortcomings, or even the occasional negative review, but they are far rarer. I penned this review because I think that Vornheim is a product sure to disappoint most old-school gamers. Vornheim’s many flaws exceed its very modest virtues. It is poorly organized, too fragmentary to serve its stated purpose of providing a complete city toolkit, and its content is too eccentric to be of use to most referees. Vornheim deserves a fair-minded review that identifies these failings in detail. This is that review.

Overview

Vornheim states that its intended purpose is to provide a referee with the tools necessary to run a city adventure “with a minimum of hassle, so you and your players can get to the good stuff.” It is meant to be a “kit” to facilitate the creation of a city “even in the middle of the game.” But it does so within the context of a particular city, Vornheim.

The book gives some general notes on Vornheim and neighboring locales; details three specific locations in the city—a medusa’s lair, wondrous zoo, and library; provides rules or guidelines about navigating in a city, generating building floorplans, the law, non-player character contacts, chases, items costs, and libraries; and includes several random tables regarding aristocrats, books, non-player characters, random encounters, fortune-telling, searching corpses, magical effects, types of buildings, and other subjects. In addition to these contents, the interior of the dustjacket contains a map of a significant portion of the city. The front and back covers of the book contain charts for generating certain random results, such as the hit location of an attack, by dropping a four-sided die on the covers.

The dustjacket art is in color and depicts an androgynous figure battling a peryton with a flail. The dustjacket’s interior city map also is in color. The remainder of the book's art and diagrams are in black and white.

Some Specifics

Almost a third of the book—21 of its 64 pages—is devoted to three very specific locations within the city: the House of the Medusa, Immortal Zoo of Ping Feng, and the Library of Zorlac. These are effectively three adventure locations or miniature adventure modules, for lack of a better description.

Vornheim has a sensibility reminiscent of dark, weird fairy tales. For example:

• a nearby goblin city’s inhabitants are said to “speak backwards and walk on the ceiling”;
• a horned goddess’s priesthood once built their temples in “colossal goat-like creatures”; and
• there are scholars who can read the skins of snakes like books, some are cookbooks.

There is a section on superstitions, which are intended to flesh out the city’s culture. For example:

• “Cows are considered indolent and undesirable. Anyone bringing a live cow into Vornheim will lose a shoe within a week.”
• “Pigs must be present at all trials.”
• “No dog will be faithful to someone who gives leftovers to a crow.”

There are two pages of “player commentaries,” which are observations about the campaign made by Zak’s players. These provide brief glimpses of their experiences in and perceptions of Vornheim.

The city map and building diagrams in the book are somewhat impressionistic in appearance. Readers accustomed to clean, precise maps and floorplans will find little that is familiar. The book does, however, include a shortcut method of generating rudimentary floorplans for ordinary buildings.

The book provides mechanics for “urban-crawling.” These are intended for situations in which adventurers are traveling through the city but their movement is hindered in some manner (e.g., chases, evasions, searches, hostile locals, civil disorder). These mechanics includes guidelines for creating neighborhood boundaries and determining street layouts and destination locations within the city on the fly.

Analysis

The overview should make plain that which is obvious from a quick perusal of the book—Vornheim is very incomplete. Most of the city is left undescribed and undetailed. Apart from the very few locations that are detailed, the referee is left to his own devices other than some thematic notes that often have no immediate game application and some random tables. Zak pitches the spare amount of detail as a virtue, avoiding the exhaustive treatment of the typical city supplement. But he merely replaces too much detail with not enough. The result is a setting too fragmentary to run as written.

As an example of its fragmentary and disorganized nature, consider the Church of Vorn. One gathers that it is a significant force within the city, but the book gives little detail about it. We know only that:

• its cathedral is a significant feature of the inner city, and there is an impressionistic diagram of it;
• Vorn is a grim god of iron, rust, and rain;
• the color brown “is reserved by Vorn, to use on rust” and thus wearing it is taboo;
• the tenets of their faith require priests of Vorn to use edged weapons rather than blunt ones, as they regard attacking with the latter hypocritical, and they lose a memorized spell if they transgress this tenet;
• the church may or may not be corrupt, prone to fanaticism, or in the grip of occult influences; and
• the church administers trial by combat, in which the combatants fight in pools of waist-height rusty water.

These sketchy details are interesting. But they are more of a beginning, not the finished product that should appear in published work. A good referee would need to flesh these ideas out for use.

Moreover, this organized summary of the church also belies the haphazard presentation of this material. These details appear in various sections of the book across pages 2, 5, 6, 9, 10, 32, and 59. Instead of getting an organized paragraph or two of material or a bullet-point summary, the reader has to search this information out and organize it for himself. A more useful approach would have been to place this information on the page opposite the diagram of the cathedral, so that it could be quickly read and later accessed for reference as necessary.

This haphazard presentation is a consistent feature of the book. Recall the inexplicable superstition that pigs must be present at trial? That appears on page 10 without context; on page 59 we learn that the people of Vornheim believe that pigs are the only honest animal. They sometimes conduct trials by a ritual known as trial by swine:

7 pigs are tied to the defendant by 10’ ropes and the defendant must go about his or her business in this way for 12 days. If the defendant cuts the ropes, leaves the city, or goes mad, s/he is guilty.

Set aside the silliness of this procedure, why are these details separated by 58 pages? Zak does not need this material to appear in one place; it’s his setting. But this disorganization is a nightmare for another referee who wants to run Vornheim. A referee who wants to make this material his own is going to have to devote a lot of time to this book.

This is not a minor fault. The haphazard presentation is exacerbated by other shortcomings—small font sizes, less than ideal formatting and layout, a hard-to-read table of contents, and lack of an index. The end result is that the book is a chore to navigate and its contents are hard to digest. All of this undermines the book’s stated purpose of assisting the referee to run city adventurers with “a minimum of hassle.”

Setting aside the manner of presentation, the contents are an odd hodgepodge for a supplement that bills itself as a “complete city kit.” As noted, roughly a third of the book is devoted to three specific locations that effectively serve as miniature adventure modules. In a larger supplement, this sort of material would be welcome. But if one only has 64 pages to provide the tools necessary to run urban adventure on the fly, the inclusion of this material is a mistake. The space is needed for other, more essential matters.

The particular locations included are creative. But Zak’s vision is an eccentric one. The inclusion of a medusa with a manor is consistent with the dark, weird fairy-tale sensibility of the book. Opinions will vary on whether this sensibility is an asset or a liability. It has limited appeal for me. More to the point, Zak’s creative vision is well enough outside of the mainstream of fantasy gaming—even broadly defined—that most referees will not share his sensibility. He references Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass as inspiration for Vornheim’s legal system. That should suffice to give one a feel for how bizarre the setting can be and how out of step it is with most old-school campaigns.

Some of the material in the book is difficult to describe as anything more than filler. Inclusion of the player commentaries section is baffling given the space limitations. Consider these two comments:

• On Vornheim’s taverns: “When I went out in Vornheim I had too much to drink. I had a good time, but I had so much to drink that I probably would’ve had a good time anywhere.”
• On Vornheim’s NPCs: “Those random guys are fun. . . . I always end up having sex with them to get information and then there isn’t any information. Like I’ll have sex with the vet to have drugs and there’s no drugs.”

I suppose this is the kind of thing that is bound to happen in Zak’s game; his players are porn stars. But of what conceivable use is this information to other referees? The question answers itself.

Other material, if not filler, is still of no use to time-pressed referees and will not be of interest to players. Most of the superstitions fall into this category. By way of illustration: “All cakes must be tasted by the oldest person in the room first, or else they will taste like fish. Except fishcakes, which will taste like rye.”

The last half of the book is devoted to mechanics and tables that are supposed to assist a referee to run urban adventures off the cuff. The tables likely are the most readily usable by other referees. But they once again reflect Zak’s unconventional tastes. Two pages are devoted to generating random aristocrats, and supply details like: “has a peculiar fondness for injured women,” “compulsively shaves women bald,” “only finds joy in the sound of innocent women crying,” and “bathes in the liquefied bone of young maidens.” Not all of the results are this weird, but enough are that it reduces the usefulness of the table. The table devoted to the random generation of non-player characters is equally oddball, including results like: “is a random PC’s mother in disguise,” “is secretly a creative genius on the level of William Shakespeare,” “vomits often” for no reason, and “has an unusually well-maintained collection of doll houses.”

Doubtless this material suits Zak’s style. It is unsuited in most others’ though. The net result is that the tables—which span 17 pages—are of limited use to others. The best that could be said for these tables as a whole is that they might serve as examples to referees for the creation of their own tables. Regardless of differences in taste, however, a true “complete city kit” would have to include more tables on a wider variety of subjects.

Of the mechanics presented in the book, the “urban-crawling” rules have received the most praise. I think they could be used, but very little space is devoted to them—just two pages. This material would have benefited from a more expanded treatment, given how important it is to a city kit that does not feature a complete map of the city. These rules would be less useful, arguably not useful at all, for referees who have fully mapped their own city setting.

Zak’s decision to try to make the entire book useful, including its covers and dustjacket, is innovative. But not all innovation is good. One of the cover charts does no more than simulate a d20 attack roll and its corresponding damage (as well as hit location if desired) through the mechanic of dropping a d4 on the cover. How is this an improvement over just rolling standard attack and damage dice simultaneously? It is not, of course.

I have left the artwork for last, because an assessment of it is much more subjective. As a purely descriptive matter, it is not old-school. Zak's style has nothing in common with artists commonly associated with old-school gaming (e.g., Peter Mullen, Erol Otus). I find it crude and unappealing. But judge for yourself:

[Map of the House of the Medusa]

Whatever one thinks of its artistic merit, this is less utilitarian than a traditional map. Perhaps the best than can be said for this map is that you get what you pay for and the price point is relatively low.

Conclusion

Vornheim is creative, more creative than many other OSR products. But this is a two-edged sword. Its creative direction sharply diverges from what most old-school gamers will find to their tastes.

It is mislabeled. It is not a “complete city kit” by any definition. It utterly fails to realize its stated purpose.

If Vornheim is any indication, Zak has an artistic bent. Vornheim would have benefited from a critical, right-brained editor or collaborator. The absence of such input is apparent from the poor focus, disorganization, and inclusion of much material that is of little or no practical value game-wise.

Vornheim is not entirely bereft of merit. It could be mined for ideas. But mining is hard labor, and the gold in these hills is sparse indeed. A good supplement should save the referee time and work. Vornheim does not.

This book is a missed opportunity. A well-done book that is half city setting and half toolkit for running urban adventures there (and elsewhere) would be very useful. Vornheim is not that book.

April 16 Postscript

A version of Zak's "urban-crawling" rules are posted at his blog. Had I realized this, I would have included a link. Though the online version is not identical to the book's content, it will help readers understand the mechanics.

Iron Maiden + Fiend Folio

This kickstarter also appeals to me:

I'd love to see other mash-ups like this.

Blueholme Journeymanne Rules

This kickstarter for a Holmes-inspired retroclone spanning levels 1 though 20 seems very worthwhile.

I'm looking forward to seeing it in print.

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Revised Retainer Tables

RETAINERS

Hiring Retainers

Retainers are 0-level hirelings that may be hired for their base salary, food and lodging, plus a percentage of their employer’s share of monetary treasure. They typically are available for hire in most civilized locales, such as cities, towns, and fortresses.

The number of retainers that can be hired by a single employer is limited by the would-be employer’s charisma score; consult the Table 5 on page 8 of the rulebook for these limitations.

If potential retainers are available, the DM should determine the number present based on the locale and circumstances and then determine their type on an individual basis by rolling 2d6 for each individual and consulting the following chart:

Roll 2d6	Result
2-7	Combatant
8-9	Non-Combatant
10-12	Specialist

Once the general type of retainer—combatant, non-combatant, or specialist—is determined, consult the appropriate table below to randomly determine the potential retainer’s specific profession, qualifications, or skills.

If an adventurer then wishes to hire this particular individual, he should roll 2d6 and consult the following chart for the potential retainer’s response to his offer:

Roll 2d6	Result
2-6	declines offer
7-8	asks for greater compensation
9-12	accepts offer

If a potential retainer asks for greater compensation, his potential employer must increase the offer in some fashion, such as the ways listed below for attaining bonuses to the hiring roll.

The preceding chart assumes that the adventurer offers the standard terms of employment. He may increase his odds in the following ways:

• buying the potential retainer strong drink—beer, mead, liquor—at the outset of negotiations results in a +1 bonus to the hiring roll
• offering to increase the potential retainer’s daily salary—by at least double the usual amount—likewise results in a +1 bonus to the hiring roll
• offering to upgrade the potential retainer’s equipment in a significant manner, such as the purchase of better armor, results in a +1 bonus to the hiring roll
• offering to increase the potential retainer’s percentage of their employer’s treasure by 5% results in a +2 bonus to the hiring roll
• the preceding bonuses are not exclusive; they are offered by way of example and are cumulative of one another—i.e., more than one may apply to a single roll

Combatants

For each potential retainer who is a combatant, roll on the following table to determine his particular profession, qualifications, or skills:

#	Type	Hit Points	Equipment	Cost/Day
1.	Weapon Bearer	d3	short sword, leather armor	1 Silver Piece
2.	Shield Bearer	d3	short sword, leather armor, large shield	1 Silver Piece
3.	Archer	d3	short bow, 20 arrows, dagger, leather armor	2 Silver Pieces
4.	Spearman	d3	spear, leather armor	2 Silver Pieces
5.	Mercenary	d3+1	long sword, ring mail, shield	5 Silver Pieces
6.	Man-at-Arms	d3+1	long sword, lance, chain mail, shield, horse	1 Gold Piece

• combatants—those who will be directly involved combat—are entitled to a 10 percent share of their employer’s monetary treasure
• a weapon bearer may immediately hand his employer a weapon whenever necessary—e.g., if the employer is disarmed or his weapon is broken or disabled
• a shield bearer protects his employer, increasing his AC by one; however, the shield bearer does not gain the benefit of the shield to his own armor class when doing so

Non-Combatants

For each potential retainer who is a non-combatant, roll on the following table to determine his particular profession, qualifications, or skills:

#	Type	Hit Points	Equipment	Cost/Day
1.	Porter	d2	backpack, 2 large sacks, litter	1 Silver Piece
2.	Cook	d2	pots, utensils, foodstuffs, spices, tinder box	1 Silver Piece
3.	Guide	d2	knife, walking stick	2 Silver Pieces
4.	Torch Bearer	d2	tinder box, torches or lantern, leather armor	2 Silver Pieces

• non-combatants—those who generally will not be involved in combat—are entitled to a five percent share of their employer’s monetary treasure
• porters provide muscle for carrying equipment and treasure; each may carry up to 300 pounds subject to ordinary rules regarding encumbrance and movement
• cooks permit those who eat their meals to recover 1d2 hit points per night of rest even in the wilderness; their hot meals also increase the morale of other retainers
• guides are locals familiar with the terrain; parties traveling with a guide move five extra miles per day and only have a 1-in-6 chance of becoming lost regardless of terrain
• torchbearers may kindle a flame, light a torch or lantern, and keep them lit under difficult conditions; they are allowed a saving throw of 10 to do so in most cases

Specialists

For each potential retainer who is a specialist, roll on the following table to determine his particular profession, qualifications, or skills:

#	Type	Hit Points	Equipment	Cost/Day
1.	Bard	d2	dagger, musical instrument, leather armor	1 Gold Piece
2.	Surgeon	d2	surgeon’s tools, medical supplies, smock	2 Gold Pieces
3.	Holy Man	d2+1	sacrificial dagger, holy symbol, robes	3 Gold Pieces
4.	Hedge Wizard	d2+1	staff, spell components, robes	3 Gold Pieces

• a bard is a musician and poet; adventurers who travel with a bard receive a five percent experience bonus for all activities the bard witnesses, if the he survives to tell the tale
• a surgeon may treat the physically injured once after each combat; the injured person saves and if successful regains d2+1 hit points; a surgeon may treat someone who otherwise would be dead
• a holy man is an itinerant priest or prophet unaffiliated with an organized church or cult; see the table below for sample holy men and their abilities
• a hedge wizard is a self-taught or poorly educated freelance magic-user; see the table below for further details on hedge wizards and their abilities

Holy Men

The following are eight examples of holy men; others exist. Holy men will not accept long-term employment. Most often they either do not care about the money at all—accepting employment because their god instructed them to do so—or have a charitable purpose in mind.

Each of the example holy men below have three abilities: (1) an innate characteristic; (2) an ability that they may use once per day; and (3) an ability that they may use more than once per day based on a d6 mechanic. However, they generally may try to use this last ability only once in a given situation or combat.

#	Type	Description and Abilities
1.	Dervish	A dervish communes with his god via ecstatic religious rites. – he has a bonus of 2 to his AC due to his agility – once a day, he can make another ecstatic (+1 bonus/1d6 rounds) – on a 1–2 on a d6, he can cause a target to dance for 1d4 rounds
2.	Elementalist	An elementalist invokes the jinn, ifrit, or other desert spirits. – any fire he kindles is smokeless and burns ten times longer than usual – once a day, he can assume gaseous form for 1d6 rounds – on a 1–2 on a d6, he may summon a minor spirit for a round
3.	Exorcist	An exorcist protects against and banishes demons and other extraplanar beings. – he has a +4 bonus to all saves against these beings – once a day, he can cast a protective circle against them in a 20-foot radius – on a 1–2 on a d6, he can banish a demon to its place of origin
4.	Hermit	A hermit is a recluse who wears a coarse hair shirt and has taken a vow of silence. – he may walk over any solid substance without incurring injury or damage – once a day, he can silence a 10-foot radius for 1d6 rounds – on a 1–2 on a d6, he can seal a target’s mouth for 1d4 rounds
5.	Sadhu	A sadhu renounces worldly things and travels nearly naked but for his holy spear. – he has a +3 bonus to attacks/damage with it – once a day, he can allow an additional save against disease – on a 1–2 on a d6, he can negate an effect suffered by another
6.	Snake Handler	A snake handler interacts with venomous snakes to prove his divine favor. – his pet snake may attack any foe that engages him in melee (1d2 damage) – once a day, he can grant an additional save against venom – on 1–2 on a d6, he can charm 1d4 snakes or 1 giant snake
7.	Wonder-Worker	A wonder-worker performs miracles to demonstrate the power of his god. – he has a +2 bonus to all saving throws and non-combat rolls – once a day, he can heal another for 2d4+2 hit points by touch – on a roll of 1–2 on a d6, he may multiply or purify food/drink
8.	Yogi	A yogi pursues the divine through contemplation, meditation, and reflection. – he is immune to mind-affecting spells and effects – once a day, he can levitate for 1d4 turns (see spell description) – on a 1–2 on a d6, he may grant 8 hours’ rest for 1 of meditation

Hedge Wizards

All hedge wizards have a staff. Whenever attacked in melee, they may imbue their staff with magical energy and try to parry by rolling 1–2 on a d6. The staff is non-magical though and no one else wielding it will have the ability to parry with it.

Hedge wizards have a spellbook, which is unreadable gibberish to others, including those who can read magic. The book contains two spells—randomly determined by rolling on the chart below. Hedge wizards may cast both spells once per day.

All of the spells below permit a saving throw when cast on an unwilling recipient, unless the spell description indicates otherwise. If the description does not state a specific range, treat it as effective within visual range so long as it’s reasonable.

Hedge wizards may read any magical text by rolling a 1 on a d6; if they fail, then they cannot read that text and cannot try again. If they use a magical scroll, there is a 1 in 6 chance that the spell is miscast in some manner or fails to operate.

#	Spell	Spell Description
1.	Acid Rain	He can summon a rainstorm for 1d4 rounds in a 200-foot radius; range of 200 feet; does 1 point of damage to all within it each round.
2.	Blood Bond	He can create a link between himself and another creature such that damage to one does an identical amount to the other for 1d6 rounds
3.	Bug	He can infest a single target with bugs for 1d6 rounds; he must save each round until he successfully saves or be preoccupied by the bugs
4.	Combust	He can cause an object or creature to spontaneously combust; range 100 feet; 1d4 damage first round and 1 damage for the next two.
5.	Docility	He can render 1d4 animals quiet and docile but not charmed; domesticated animals do not get a saving throw, but wild animals do.
6.	Enervate	He can reduce a humanoid’s strength by 3d6 for 1d6 rounds; if reduced to 0 or below, the humanoid is immobilized and helpless.
7.	Identify Object	He can identify an enchanted object’s magical properties by handling it for 1d4 rounds; he is permitted a saving throw against ill effects.
8.	Ironskin	He can make a target’s skin damage-resistant for 1d6 rounds; the target suffers two less damage per die while this spell is in effect.
9.	Magic Manacles	He can conjure a pair of manacles that bind the hands or feet of a target for 1d4 turns; these bonds cannot be broken except by magic.
10.	Photon Bullets	He fires 1d4 orbs of light the size of sling bullets from his fingers; multiple creatures may be targeted; each orb does 1 point of damage.
11.	Play Possum	He can allow a target to pass for dead for 2d6 rounds; the target appears to be a corpse and the fact that he is alive is undetectable.
12.	Portal Password	He can assign a password to a doorway or other portal that lasts 1d4 days; to pass, one must say the password or save with a -2 penalty.
13.	Reverse Gravity	He can reverse gravity in a 30-foot radius for 1d4 rounds; range of 50 feet; rate of ascent within the radius is 10 feet per round.
14.	Servitude	He can force a single target to serve him for 1d4 days; the target is aware of his servitude but cannot resist; the wizard can only have one servant at a time.
15.	Shadowstep	He can step into and move among the shadows for 2d6 rounds; he is incorporeal and imperceptible as anything other than a shadow.
16.	Shrink	He can shrink an object or person for 2d6 rounds; range 150 feet; roll 1d10 to determine the percentage reduction in size (1 = 10% etc.).
17.	Spellbind	He can target a spell-caster; next time the target casts a spell, he must save to finish casting or else keeps casting each round till he saves.
18.	Spore Cloud	He creates a thick cloud of spores in a 200-foot radius for 2d6 rounds; range 200 feet; all in it must save to attack or pursue another.
19.	Translocate Object	He can teleport an inanimate object from one location to another 2d10 x 10 feet in distance; the object may weigh up to 35 pounds.
20.	Transport Circle	He draws two circles within 2,000 feet of one another; people can teleport between them; each time, roll 1d10; the circle ceases to work on a 1.

Terms of Employment

Most retainers hire on for a single adventuring session and then go their own way. An employer may try to re-hire a previous retainer using the ordinary rules outlined above.

If a retainer is killed in service, his employer is obligated to pay his salary, if not already paid, and his share of treasure to the retainer’s next of kin. If reasonably possible, a deceased retainer’s personal possessions also should be returned.

Advancement

Combatants usually become first-level fighters after completing an adventure; they should reroll their hit points (but cannot have less than their current total). As first-level fighters, their daily salary increases to 2 GP/day and they now receive 20 percent of their employer’s monetary treasure.

Non-combatants and specialists generally do not advance in level. However, a DM may at his discretion assign a returning non-combatant increased or additional abilities or hit points.

Great, Genderqueer Elves

Sex
You can play a male or female character without gaining any special benefits or hindrances. Think about how your character does or does not conform to the broader culture’s expectations of sex, gender, and sexual behavior. . . .

You don’t need to be confined to binary notions of sex and gender. The elf god Corellon Larethian is often seen as androgynous or hermaphroditic, for example, and some elves in the multiverse are made in Corellon's image. You could also play a female character who presents herself as a man, a man who feels trapped in a female body, or a bearded female dwarf who hates being a mistaken for a male. Likewise, your character’s sexual orientation is for you to decide.

Fifth Edition D&D Player’s Handbook, page 121.

This is one of the sillier passages ever written in a role-playing game. In fairness, the bit about Corellon arguably has a basis in the history of the game; AD&D's Deities & Demigods stated that Corellon "is alternately male or female, both or neither." Otherwise, only the first sentence of the material on sex concerns mechanics; the rest is just politics or virtue-signaling.

Does anyone really need this guidance? In the almost 35 years I have been playing D&D, these issues have never arisen at the table. And if players or the referee were inclined to raise these issues, they would not need this guidance, which only states the obvious. My character’s sexual orientation is up to me? Thanks for clarifying that Wizards of the Coast.

Swords & Wizardry: Standard Adventurer's Pack

I usually hand out a character creation cheatsheet: a single sheet of paper that walks players through character creation step by step with references to the relevant pages of the rulebook. Its purpose is to speed up character creation for new players. For whatever reason, buying equipment seems to take a fair amount of time. So as part of the cheatsheet, I created a standard adventuring pack that players may opt purchase for 20 gold pieces in lieu of buying their gear item by item.

Standard Adventurer's Pack
backpack	bedroll
waterskin	iron rations, 7 days
2 bottles of wine	large sack
crowbar	5 torches
tinderbox	pint of oil
hammer	10 iron spikes
hemp rope, 50 feet	grappling hook

This may seem like a fairly limited amount of equipment, but it actually is 75.7 pounds (or 757 coins) for purposes of encumbrance. That's a manageable pack for a strong, physically fit male. But it is a substantial burden nonetheless. It highlights the need to either hire porters or other retainers to help carry equipment or carry far less equipment, perhaps dividing up essential equipment between members of an expedition.

New Swords & Wizardry Character Class: The Witch

For my Shattered Kingdoms campaign, my plan is to detail the area around the Hyrcanian Sea as a desolate land of witches and make the witch (or warlock) available as a new character class. Below is my tentative draft of that new class.

The Witch

Witches are lawful or chaotic spellcasters who receive their powers by daily petition in the same fashion as clerics and druids. But whereas clerics pray to the gods and druids venerate nature itself, witches supplicate primeval elemental beings or lesser nature spirits, such as:

• Notos, the South Wind—a spirit of the air who is a harbinger of storms and father of the fallen leaves;
• The Faerie Queen—a fey demigoddess who presides over a court of nymphs, sprites, and other woodland beings;
• Ningal, the Lady of the Reeds—a water spirit who safeguards marshlands with a retinue of naiads and fishes;
• The Horned God—a demigod associated with the wilderness and wild places who is served by an army of fauns;
• Old Worm—a chthonic entity associated with decay, decomposition, and the despoilment of nature; and
• Odqan, the Prince of Cinders—a fiery spirit who lights the way for his chosen and incinerates all unbelievers.

Witches use the Druid Advancement Table for level progression and that class’s saving throw, spell progression chart, spell list, and hit dice, but they do not gain access to fourth, fifth, sixth, or seventh level spells due to the limited power of the beings that they serve. To offset this significant limitation, witches gain the following abilities:

Expanded Spell List. At each level, including first, a witch may select one spell from the magic-user spell list and add it to those she may cast. The spell must be of a level that the witch can currently cast. She receives these additional magic-user spells in the same manner as any other—by supplication of the elemental being or nature spirit she worships. This expands her magical repertoire, but she remains subject to the memorization limits imposed by the Druid Advancement Table.

Cantrips. Twice a day, on a roll of 1–4 on a d6 the witch may cast a cantrip—a minor spell that may not do damage or have combat effects. Witches may use these to do things like clean, dry, fasten or tie, freshen, palm, polish or shine, spill, sprout, stitch or sew, or warm objects or persons. If used to affect others—such as making them nod or sneeze—no save is allowed.

Bless or Curse. At second level, a lawful witch gains the power to bless and a chaotic witch gains the power to curse, which may be invoked once per day. To bless, the witch rolls a saving throw; if she succeeds, her target is blessed for 1d4 +1/level rounds. While blessed, the target makes two rolls whenever a die roll is required and always takes the most favorable result. Conversely, when a witch curses another, the target must make a saving throw; if the target fails, he is cursed for 1d4 +1/level rounds. While cursed, the target makes two rolls whenever a die roll is required and always takes the least favorable result.

Familiar. At third level, a witch gains a randomly chosen familiar—a spirit in animal guise that aids her. These come in many forms, four of which are detailed below, and confer various abilities on their mistresses as they advance in level. If her familiar is slain, a witch takes 1d2 damage and must save or faint for 2d4 rounds. A slain familiar reappears in a week’s time.

1. Owl. HD 1d4 hit points +2/witch’s level; AC 2; Atk talons (1d2+1/witch’s level); Move Fly 15; Save and THAC0 are the same as the witch. The owl confers the following abilities:

Level	Ability Conferred by Familiar
3	darkvision 60 feet—the witch may always see in non-magical darkness
4	acute hearing—the witch may hear sounds as a thief of the same level
5	camouflage—the witch is invisible while motionless in natural cover on 1–4 on a d6
6	fly—once per day, the witch may fly like the owl for one round per level

2. Wolf. HD 3d4 hit points +2/witch’s level; AC 4; Atk bite (1d4+1/witch’s level); Move 18; Save and THAC0 are the same as the witch. The wolf confers the following abilities:

Level	Ability Conferred by Familiar
3	lupine movement—the witch has movement rate of 18 and may leap 16 feet
4	acute senses—the witch may make a saving throw to avoid being surprised
5	wolfsight—once per day, the witch may see through the wolf’s eyes for 1 round/level
6	howl—in the wilderness, the witch may summon 1d4 wolves once per day

3. Rook. HD 1d3 hit points +2/witch’s level; AC 0; Atk beak (1+1/witch’s level); Move Fly 18; Save and THAC0 are same as the witch. The rook confers the following abilities:

Level	Ability Conferred by Familiar
3	secret wisdom—the witch gains an extra first- or second-level magic-user spell
4	messenger—the rook may carry messages of 50 words or less to and from others
5	location—once per day, the witch may locate an object per the clerical spell
6	truesight—once per day, the witch may see through illusions and see invisible things

4. Serpent. HD 2d4 hit points +2/witch’s level; AC 3; Atk bite (1d3+1/witch’s level); Move 10; Save and THAC0 are same as the witch. The serpent confers the following abilities:

Level	Ability Conferred by Familiar
3	snakeskin—the witch has a base armor class of 7 [12] and her skin is waterproof
4	serpentine metabolism—the witch need only eat every 1d4 days and may feign death
5	shed skin—once per day, the witch may significantly alter or disguise her appearance
6	venom—a target hit by the witch additionally loses 1d4 hit points/round until it saves

Wand. At seventh level, a witch acquires a wooden wand which permits her to focus her concentration and will when invoking the power of the being she supplicates. For every 1d4 hit points expended, she may increase by 50 percent the area of effect, duration, or range of a spell cast. Alternatively, the witch may impose a -1 penalty to a target’s saving throw for every 1d4 hit points expended. The witch must choose how many d4s she will roll before seeing their results.

Magic Items. Like druids, witches are able to use any magical item usable by clerics with the exception clerical scrolls.

Coven. At eleventh level, a witch may found her own coven by building a place of worship and consecrating an altar there. This may consist of a circle of standing stones, a sacred grove, a chapel, a cavern complex, or some other edifice appropriate to the power the witch serves. A witch who does so will attract lesser witches and other followers.

Shattered Kingdoms: Jub, The Wicked

In the original Shattered Kingdoms Gazatteer, I included the following entry for the city-state of Jub:

Jub. Jub is a wealthy, independent city-state associated with trade, without regard to legality and morality. In particular, it is known for its vast slave market, lotus trade, and brothels, which are typically staffed by temple prostitutes in houses of worship. Jub’s principal deity is Mammon, a god of gluttony, greed, and lust.

But the entry provided no further details on slavery or the lotus trade and the Shattered Kingdoms Pantheon omitted any mention of Mammon. The following expanded material provides those details.

MAMMON is a chaotic god of gluttony, greed, and lust whose worship originated in Jub. His symbol is several gold bars stacked into a pyramid surmounted by an all-seeing eye. His priests have these abilities:

• bribery: once per day, his clerics may offer a bribe of 3d6 gold pieces; the bribe acts like a charm spell, but only for a single object or purpose and a more limited duration (save allowed)
• recruitment: retainers are always available for hire by Mammon's clerics and accept an offer of employment on a roll of 1–5 on a d6, so long as they are paid twice the going rate in gold; they have 1d3 hit points more than usual

The bribery ability reflects the way in which Mammon's priests corrupt others with money. The specified amount of money, 3d6, assumes ordinary circumstances. The referee may require the priest to offer a larger bribe if, for example, the priest is requesting a significant betrayal or if the party being bribed is especially loyal or virtuous. In other cases, the referee may allow the priest to increase the amount offered in order to impose a penalty on the target's saving throw.

The recruitment ability reflects the fact that some men's loyalty can be bought with coin and the priests of Mammon have a reputation for paying well. As a result, retainers are always available for hire by these priests, regardless of locale or circumstances, and seldom turn down their offers of employment. Retainers hired by priests of Mammon have 1d3 more hit points than usual because the higher rate of pay draws the very best mercenaries.

Slavery. Slavery is common throughout the region, but the conditions of servitude and the treatment of slaves varies from place to place. People are reduced to slavery in many ways, including conquest, criminal conviction, and debt. The region also is home to many former slaves—be they runaways, manumitted slaves, or those who bought their freedom. Characters may opt to begin play as a slave or former slave. Those who do so receive a +1 bonus to strength or constitution, but suffer a -2 penalty to their charisma due to their low social status, which is evident from tattoos or brands associated with slavery.

Lotus Trade. The lotus may be bought in the markets of Jub. Its purchase and use may be illicit elsewhere. Ordinary lotus blossoms are pink in hue. These addictive blossoms are consumed for their narcotic properties. Extraordinary varieties also may be available for purchase, but are especially dangerous. These varieties cost 250 gold pieces (or more).

White Lotus. Consuming the white lotus increases a single attribute by 1d4 points for a number of turns equal to the die roll. An ability score may temporarily exceed 18 as a result; if this occurs, the referee will assign appropriate bonuses.

Crimson Lotus. Consuming the crimson lotus imparts 3d4 temporary hit points for a number of turns equal to the die roll. The imbiber loses these before suffering any loss to his normal hit points. This does not alter the user's level or hit dice.

Blue Lotus. Consuming the blue lotus permits a spellcaster to rememorize 1d2 spells immediately and cast spells as one level higher for 2d4 turns. If used by a non-spellcaster, it will impart a +2 bonus to saving throws against magic for 2d4 turns.

Purple Lotus. Consuming the purple lotus confers immunity to mind-altering spells or magical effects, such as charm, sleep, and hold person, as well as psionic attacks for 3d4 turns. It also shields the mind from extra-sensory perception or detection.

Yellow Lotus. Consuming the yellow lotus allows the imbiber to see the true nature of things for 4d4 turns. For example, the imbiber sees through illusions, secret doors are as obvious as ordinary ones, and invisible creatures are visible.

These extraordinary lotus blossoms are no less narcotic and addictive and their consumption entails serious risks:

• when a lotus blossom is imbibed, the user must make a saving throw or fall unconscious for 2d4 rounds and be strung out for twice as many turns upon awakening, suffering a -1 penalty to all rolls during this period
• a user who fails the preceding saving throw, must make a second saving throw once he is no longer strung out; if the user fails this second saving throw, he is now addicted to the lotus
• lotus addicts do not gain any of the benefits of consuming the lotus when used, but must spend 10% of the treasure they obtain on ordinary lotus blossoms; this percentage increases 5% with each level gained thereafter
• a lotus addict who does not spend the required amount of treasure purchasing ordinary blossoms suffers a -2 penalty to all rolls; he also may suffer this penalty if his immediate supply is somehow lost or destroyed
• a lotus addict can be cured of the addiction by a neutralize poison spell; once cast, the addict must pass a system shock roll (see page 8 of the rulebook) or be incapacitated for 2d6 days

N.B. The guidelines regarding lotus blossoms were inspired by K&K Alehouse commenter Welleran's house rules.

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Jumping

Adventurers often try to jump across a pit, from one ledge to another, or over an obstacle or hazard. Swords & Wizardry has no rules for jumping. As these situations are common and consistency is desirable, I have created the following rules:

Jumping

Strength Score	Standing Long Jump	Running Long Jump
3–4	1d4+2 feet	2d4+5 feet
5–6	1d4+3 feet	2d4+6 feet
7–15	1d4+4 feet	2d4+7 feet
16	1d4+5 feet	2d4+8 feet
17	1d4+6 feet	2d4+9 feet
18	1d4+7 feet	2d4+10 feet

• this table assumes that the jumper is bipedal and the size of an ordinary human or similar humanoids; halflings and dwarves respectively have a -1 and a -2 penalty
• similar penalties should be imposed on other creatures of smaller stature or stride; larger creatures, such as giants, should have significant bonuses and possibly larger dice
• characters with a dexterity score of 13 or better receive +1 bonus and those with a dexterity score of 8 or lower receive a -1 penalty; similar modifiers may be applied to especially nimble and clumsy creatures
• chain mail and ring mail impose a -2 penalty and plate mail imposes a -3 penalty; no penalty or bonus is applied for jumps made by those wearing leather armor or clothing
• encumbrance of 76–100, 101–50, and 151–300 pounds respectively impose penalties of -1, -2, and -4; these penalties are in addition to the penalties for armor
• if a jumper barely misses his target—e.g., someone jumping a chasm comes up a foot short—he may make a saving throw to try to grab hold of a ledge or the like

Design Note. I looked to the AD&D Dungeoneer's Survival Guide and Wilderness Survival Guide for guidance but disliked their approach. Both guides base a character's jumping ability on his level and provide for very slow advancement in ability; one's initial jumping ability does not improve until seventh level under their rules. A level-based approach perhaps makes sense for a character class that has a specialized jumping skill, like an acrobat. But an individual's general ability to jump strikes me as more of an innate characteristic unlikely to improve too much over time. In this regard, adventurers are dissimilar to professional athletes who specialize in long jumping; the former may jump with some frequency, but the latter are training for that particular event. However, if you wish to incorporate improvement over time into the house rule offered above, one possible approach would be to add a +1 bonus for every two or three levels of advancement. One might provide different rates of advancement to different classes as well (e.g., thieves might advance faster than fighters, fighters might advance faster than clerics and magic-users). I based the outer limits of jumping ability on the world records for the standing and running long jumps, and then reduced the distances for characters with lower strengths.

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Climbing

In Swords & Wizardry Complete, a thief’s ability to climb walls is extraordinary: a thief’s percentage chance to climb walls applies to surfaces that others cannot climb; if others have a percentage chance to climb a surface, a thief likely can do so automatically (page 23). The following guidelines, which are derived in part from the AD&D Dungeoneer’s Survival Guide and Wilderness Survival Guide, are intended to fill in the gaps in the rules:

Climbing

Climbable Surfaces

• walls and cliffs that are sheer, smooth, only slightly cracked, or rough but without handholds can only be climbed by thieves absent the use of pitons or other gear
• if a wall or cliff is more than sheer—i.e., its angle is less than 90 degrees (e.g., an overhang)—even a thief will have a negative modifier to his climbing roll

Climbing Checks

• for walls climbable by non-thieves, they have a base 40% chance to do so; use of a grappling hook and rope, pitons, or other gear adds a +40% modifier
• for non-thieves, a strength score of 13 to 16 confers a +5% modifier to climbing rolls; a strength score of 17 to 18 confers a 10% modifier to climbing rolls
• chain and ring mail impose a -15% modifier and plate mail imposes a -40% modifier to climbing rolls; climbing rolls made in leather armor or clothing are unmodified
• encumbrance of 76–100, 101–50, and 151–300 pounds respectively impose modifiers of -5%, -10%, and -15%; these modifies are in addition to the modifiers for armor
• negative modifiers also may be applied to climbing rolls for various conditions—moss, moisture, crumbling surfaces—or circumstances such as being attacked while climbing

Falling

• if a climbing roll is failed, randomly determine how high the climber made it before falling; e.g., if climbing 60 feet, roll a d6—a result of 2 would mean a fall from 20 feet
• precautions, such as securing the rope with pitons or roping together with other climbers, may arrest a fall; make a saving throw to see if each piton et cetera holds
• a climber who falls takes 1d6 damage for every 10 feet fallen; he may make a saving throw to avoid 1d6 of this damage, which represents slowing or partial arrest of the fall

Rates of Ascent and Descent

• if necessary to determine a rate of ascent or descent or the amount of time spent climbing, non-thieves climb 5d6 feet per round and thieves climb 6d6 feet per round
• bonuses to the rate of ascent or descent may added for favorable slope or plentiful handholds; these bonuses may consist of additional dice or a modifier to each die

Grappling Hooks

• grappling hooks can be thrown upward a number of feet equal to 1/3 of the character’s strength x 10 and twice this distance horizontally with sufficient throwing space
• to try to secure a grappling hook to a fixed point, roll a d6; on a 4–6 it securely grabs; for those with a strength or dexterity bonus, the hook securely grabs on a 3–6
• if the surface the grappling hook grabs is unstable or is potentially incapable of bearing the load, it is possible that the hook will come loose during the climb

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Firing into a Melee and Missile Recovery

Firing into a Melee. Swords & Wizardry Complete states that shooting or throwing missile weapons into melee combat is unpredictable and that targets will be randomly determined by the DM, but provides no specific mechanics (see page 40). So I borrow the mechanic from the Planet Eris house rules. If an adventurer fires a missile weapon into melee combat, he makes an ordinary attack roll; if successful, he hits the enemy target. If he misses the enemy target, then he rolls a d6; on a roll of 1 or 2, the errant missile strikes a randomly selected ally instead.

Missile Recovery. After combat, an adventurer who fired a bow or crossbow must roll a d2 for each arrow or bolt fired: 1—the missile is broken or lost; 2—the missile is intact and reusable. Alternatively, an adventurer may simply assume that 50% of the missiles fired are broken or lost. The rate of breakage or loss may be higher if the missiles were fired under circumstances ensuring their loss (e.g., if fired over water or if dipped in pitch and set alight before being fired).

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Encumbrance

Swords & Wizardry Complete addresses encumbrance in a fairly incomplete fashion (see pages 32-33 of the rulebook). It does not provide any weight values for armor, equipment, or weapons. So calculating encumbrance is not really possible on a by-the-book basis. Thus, I have supplemented the rules with additional information from Advanced Dungeons & Dragons.

Encumbrance

Swords & Wizardry's encumbrance rules are very generous. They assume that standard adventuring equipment is a mere 10 pounds, excluding armor and weapons (see page 32). I generally stick with this assumption for ease of computation. This is Dungeons & Dragons, not Audits & Accountants; detailed spreadsheets tracking encumbrance are not my idea of fun. So I usually guesstimate. But reasonable people sometimes disagree and it may be necessary to calculate encumbrance with greater precision if, for example, an adventurer is carrying a lot of equipment, or it is necessary to determine how much treasure may be carried away from a large hoard. Here are guidelines for doing so:

• 300 pounds ordinarily is the maximum encumbrance for normal adventurers (see page 32); strength scores of 12 and above permit adventurers to carry more weight (see page 7)
• for purposes of encumbrance, every 10 coins or gemstones is one pound unless exceptional in some regard (see page 32); for armor, equipment, and weapons consult the encumbrance tables below

Armor and Clothing

Type	Weight in Coins	Weight in Pounds
Plate Mail	700	70
Chain Mail	500	50
Ring Mail	400	40
Leather Armor	250	25
Clothes	30	3
Robe or Cloak	25	2.5
Large Shield	100	10
Small Shield	50	5
Helm	45	4.5
Boots, Hard	60	6
Boots, Soft	30	3

Equipment

Item	Weight in Coins	Weight in Pounds
Backpack	20	2
Bedroll	30	3
Bottle or Flagon	60	6
Candle	5	0.5
Flask, Empty	5	0.5
Flask, Full	20	2
Grappling Hook	100	10
Hand Tool	10	1
Lantern	60	6
Mirror	5	0.5
Potion	25	2.5
Rations, Iron	75	7.5
Rations, Standard	200	20
Rod	60	6
Rope, 50 feet	75	7.5
Sack, Large	20	2
Sack, Small	5	0.5
Scroll Case	10	1
Spike or Piton	10	1
Tinderbox (Flint & Steel)	2	0.2
Torch	25	2.5
Waterskin, Empty	5	0.5
Waterskin, Full	50	5

Weapons

Weapon	Weight in Coins	Weight in Pounds
Arrow or Quarrel	2	0.2
Axe, Battle	75	7.5
Axe, Hand	50	5
Bow, Long	100	10
Bow, Short	50	5
Club	30	3
Crossbow, Heavy	80	8
Crossbow, Light	50	5
Dagger	10	1
Javelin	20	2
Mace	75	7.5
Sling Stone	2	0.2
Spear	40	4
Staff	50	5
Sword, Bastard	100	10
Sword, Short	30	3
Sword, Long	60	6
Sword, Two-Handed	250	25
Warhammer	60	6

• the tables are not intended to be comprehensive; for any gear not specified in the preceding tables, formulate a weight in coins and pounds based on the values provided above as necessary
• for reference: plate mail, large shield, longsword, dagger, and standard equipment is 97 pounds with a movement rate of 9; substituting chain mail for plate would result in 77 pounds but the same movement rate

Swords & Wizardry House Rules: Poison

In Swords & Wizardry Complete, the rules seem to assume that poison generally is deadly (see page 10 of the rulebook). I gather that the by-the-book mechanic is save or die instantly (see the entries for giant spiders on page 113). However, there are non-lethal poisons as well (see the entries for giant centipedes on page 95). Unless a monster entry specifies otherwise, I generally apply the following guidelines:

Poison

Weak Poison. Weak poisons may allow the target a bonus on his saving throw (anywhere from +2 to +6), result in a condition other than death, such as paralysis or unconsciousness, or simply inflict extra damage.

Moderate Poison. Moderate poisons are deadly, but death is not instantaneous. A target who fails his saving throw usually dies in 1d4+1 rounds unless he imbibes an antidote or is the recipient of a neutralize poison spell.

Strong Poison. Strong poisons either result in death immediately or in 1d2 rounds. Some may impose a penalty on a target's saving throws, but any racial, class, or magical bonuses remain effective and offset any such penalty.

First Aid. An ally may attempt to bleed a poison victim’s wound and suck out the poison, provided that the victim is not already dead. Doing so allows the victim to make an additional saving throw with a penalty (usually between -2 and -4). The victim suffers 1d4 damage when this is attempted and it also requires the ally to save against poison.